Abrams v. Commonwealth

• Decision Date: 27 April 1934
• Citation: 254 Ky. 75,70 S.W.2d 986
• Parties: ABRAMS et al. v. COMMONWEALTH.
• Court: Kentucky Court of Appeals

70 S.W.2d 986

254 Ky. 75

ABRAMS et al. v. COMMONWEALTH.

Court of Appeals of Kentucky

April 27, 1934

Appeal from Circuit Court, Madison County.

L. A Abrams and others were charged with an offense, and Abrams executed a bail bond which was subsequently forfeited, and Abrams and his sureties appeal.

Reversed and remanded.

Ross &amp Ross, of Richmond, for appellants.

Bailey P. Wootton, Atty. Gen., and David C. Walls, Asst. Atty. Gen for the Commonwealth.

PERRY Justice.

On October 28, 1931, an indictment was returned by the grand jury of Madison county, charging C. C. Weber, John Dean, and the appellant, L. A. Abrams, with the crime of conspiracy. Bail bond for each of the defendants was fixed at $500. This the defendant and appellant, L. A. Abrams, executed on October 29, 1931, in the specified amount, with T. S. Abrams and Edgar Howard as sureties, whereby they undertook that the said defendant Abrams would appear in the said court on the 7th day of its February term, 1932, to answer said charge and would at all times render himself amenable to the orders and process of the said court in the prosecution of said charge.

The said defendant did thereafter so appear for trial at the February term, 1932, of the court and regularly at its succeeding terms of court until the February, 1933, term thereof, at which the prosecution of his case was set for trial on the 14th day of February, when defendant failed to appear. Upon his being called and failing to answer, the fact was noted upon the record, and, upon motion of the commonwealth, forfeiture of the bail bond was ordered and summons issued against defendant and his bondsmen to show cause at the succeeding May term why they should not be adjudged to pay the bond.

At the said term of court, the defendants filed response and amended response to the order of forfeiture, wherein they set out the facts and circumstances pleaded as excusing defendant's failure to appear in court upon the day stated. To these answers demurrers were filed, which were respectively sustained by the court, and, upon defendants' declining to plead further, the court ordered that the bail bond be forfeited, and adjudged the appellants to pay the full penal sum thereof of $500.

Complaining that the court palpably abused a sound judicial discretion in so adjudging and in refusing, under the circumstances and facts pleaded by their response demurred to, either to discharge...